As our faithful PRU readers know, the Crew has been trying to draw your attention to some proposed changes in the way planning and zoning issues will be handled in the future -- moooooving forward.
We discussed the potential for changing the dynamics of how Park Ridge city government functions in our October 8th post -- Your Attention, Please! We also mentioned the issue again at the end of our October 21st post -- Pronunciation: \kə-ˈrəp-shən\.
At next Monday's City Council meeting, the Council will be discussing, debating and possibly voting on recommendations made by the Planning and Zoning Commission. The Council will construct the process by which zoning text amendments are treated.
Posted on the City's website, for Monday night's meeting, are two background documents related to how planning and zoning issues will be handled in the future -- moving forward.
The PRU Crew feels the following memo titled "First reading of an ordinance for text amendments to the Zoning Ordinance, Zoning Case Number TA-09-02" is a must read.
MemoTA-09-02ZOAmnds11-2-09
The third paragraph of the background memo says --
Section 4.8
The Commissioners agreed that the current review process protects the system from potential political influence. The Commission serves as a proper check and balance to the system. Private parties have appropriate recourse through the Circuit Court if the Commission denies a text amendment. The Commissioners found that proposed changes to section 4.8 would be appropriate. The Commission suggested that the new chart describing the Council’s review authority should be revised to reflect a two thirds super majority vote required by Council in the first and fourth lines, and that the Council vote should be changed to “not applicable” in the second line. The Commissioners also recommended that the second line, under further action, be changed to state: None, Planning and Zoning Commission is final.”
The first two sentences sum up the entire issue beautifully. The matter really is as simple as preserving proper checks and balances, and discouraging the potential for political influence.
Any questions?
17 comments:
Come on aldermen. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.
Anonymous @ 12:21,
I believe "fixing" it is EXACTLY what some of them might be up to!
Take a look at the pending issue of billboards... The "applicant" didn't go to P&Z first...didn't go to the Alderman in whose ward these things are being considered for either...
...curious, that.
I do see how changing the process could lead to problems.
Having said that, don't people have the right to already go to their alderman?
Anon@12:36 --
They do. However, if someone is seeking a text amendment, the first step is to make an application with P&Z -- and that is what the Council members should be telling people to do, though that procedure does not seem to have been followed recently.
Thank you Pru. I agree the right procedures should be followed.
I agree with the commissioners. Doing the changes the council wants is inviting political corruption.
What is to keep Commissioners from being corrupt? You are all acting as if only the Aldermen could be corrupt. Typical blog nonsense.
1:54, I suppose anything is possible. The way I see it though is the commission members are appointed and there are more of them. They don't have to run campaigns that take in money. They have limited terms. What they approve is checked and balanced by the council but if they say no to something then I don't think the council should be in a position to go around them.
I agree with the first comment. The system is not broken. Don't fix it.
The entire reason for having zoning issues and zoning appeals separated from the City Council is to avoid having code enforcement tainted by political influence. The code is written at the City Council level so that all can have input. After it is written politics should be off the table.
Anonymous 7:24:
You are right. The whole idea of changing who can say what about zoning issues was a brain fart from Bachturd.
That guy could screw up a one car funeral with his Bachturd brain.
The juvenile namecalling is not necessary. YOu can say your peace without resorting to idiotic namecalling.
I don't think the proposed changes to council powers is a good idea but I don't feel so full of hate to have to call anyone names over it. Grow up.
Having "applicants" go through the process of applying "themselves" for a text amemdment then going through planning and zoning accomplishes this.....
having the commission determine through their findings of fact and pulic hearing testimony that this "text amendment" ...
a) is in the best interest of the community as a whole (and NOT JUST THE APPLICANT).
example...Generators, when denied an appeal at the Zoning Board of appeals, went to an alderman to put forth a text amendment as 'the city" so in case Planning and zoning denied the text, the City Council could override that denial.
next up...Billboards.
Political poo-poo does nothing but stink up the place.
I think it makes sense to leave things the way they are.
I have never liked the thinking behind the saying "If it's not broke, don't fix it".
I have always thought that if you can make something better then why not try it?
I don't see the changes being contemplated as making anything better though. So leave it alone.
so what neighborhood is gonna flood first with all this rain we're getting?
Schmitty is building an ark. Schmitty will save you all.
if i were him, I would give up
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